nela1williamss - Standard 3

Standard 3: Cultural Leadership

School executives will understand and act on the understanding of the important role a school’s culture plays in contributing to the exemplary performance of the school. School executives must support and value the traditions, artifacts, symbols and positive values and norms of the school and community that result in a sense of identity and pride upon which to build a positive future. A school executive must be able to “re-culture” the school if needed to align with school’s goals of improving student and adult learning and to infuse the work of the adults and students with passion, meaning and purpose. Cultural leadership implies understanding the school and the people in it each day, how they came to their current state, and how to connect with their traditions in order to move them forward to support the school’s efforts to achieve individual and collective goals.

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3a. Focus on Collaborative Work Environment: The school executive understands and acts on the understanding of the positive role that a collaborative work environment can play in the school’s culture.

Internship Activities

Participated in planning meetings with teachers
Participated in PLC meetings with neighboring school
Met with principal, instructional coach and cohort fellows to discuss strategies for internship projects
Participated in CASA (Collaborating Around Student Achievement Meetings)

Coursework, Trainings and Readings

Site visit to Gaston College Preparatory: KIPP; presentation of methods used for ensuring collaboration among teachers
Site visit to Bunn High School where all teachers observe the classes of at least two of their colleagues over the course of the school year
Distinguished Leadership in Practice assignments on cultural leadership - Educational Garage Sale
Weekly internship logs included reflection partnerships with teachers.
Class investigation with Dr. Cathy Williams on creating collaborative environment.
Collaborated with Hollister Elementary to gather school climate data, fall 2011.
Attended training on the Teacher Working Condition (TWC) survey included examination of school climate constructs.
DLP assignment: collaborated with teachers and mentor principal to assess the level of collaboration and functionality of PLCs.
Certified training on Facilitative Leadership and practice of skills at school sites, including finding maximum appropriate involvement and facilitating agreement.

Selected Artifacts

DLP3.1.docx

Sample CASA Agenda

3b. School Culture and Identity: The school executive develops and uses shared vision, values and goals to define the identity and culture of the school.

Internship Activities

Provided feedback on teacher observations and evaluations and facilitated PLC’s, 2011-12 school year.
Created a School Profile from Public Data for Phase I of Internship project and for Phase II, completed a detailed Examination of the School Community and Human Resources
Completed a written analysis of TWC surveys for Hollister Elementary, fall 2011.

Coursework, Trainings and Readings

Reading and application of principles from How to Win Friends and Influence People (Carnegie, 1981)
Reading and application of principles from article "Social Intelligence: The Biology of Leadership" (Goleman, 2010)
Digital Storytelling Retreat – community digital story on Halifax County
Visited Chaloner Middle School with NELA cohort fellows for Middle School Developmental Project
Participated in NELA Assessment Day – video response discussing key elements of being a culture shaper
Participated in NELA class on culture and change.
Participated and completed work for Social Justice class sessions with Dr. Lynda Tredway from Berkeley University of California
Completed DLP assignments and training that included discussion and evaluation of school culture
Studied three different cases - elementary, middle and high schools; discussed in groups three main areas needing improvement and three areas of strength
Conducted an analysis of internship school and state-recognized turn around schools, spring 2011
Created a digital story defining school culture, fall 2011.
Investigated with Dr. Cathy Williams how to create collaborative environment.
Investigated Teacher Working Condition (TWC) survey which included examination of school climate constructs, fall 2011.
Created in-depth written reflection on the importance of school culture, spring 2011.
Discussed and evaluated school culture through validated assessment tool, spring 2011.

Selected Artifacts

Culturestory.docx

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Gave feedback on teacher evaluations

3c. Acknowledges Failures; Celebrates Accomplishments and Rewards: The school executive acknowledges failures and celebrates accomplishments of the school in order to define the identity, culture and performance of the school.

Internship Activities

Attended a Board meeting to celebrate teachers and students receiving awards
Letters/notes/cards to teachers who go beyond regular job duties
Participated in culture-building activities at school (example: Potluck Lunch and Christmas social)
Participated in and led meetings about test data
Sent emails acknowledging accomplishments of staff
Requested preschool teachers to complete one home visit for each of their students during the fall 2011. To celebrate their accomplishments, I asked the teachers to complete a log, sharing something positive that happened during their visit.

Coursework, Trainings and Readings

Middle School Developmental Project – Worked collaboratively to create a product that showcases how RRGSD meets the developmental needs of its students

Selected Artifacts
Log of Home Visit Comments (Home Visits)

Kindergarten Transition Night: Our Preschool sponsored a transition to kindergarten night. The preschool children were able to go to their elementary school, have a tour and eat with the teachers. The next day, I sent this email: Screen_shot_2012-04-24_at_9.04.41_PM.png

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Email to staff after a great parent program.

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Teacher Evaluations: I use established criteria, such as those outlined in the NC Teacher Evaluation Standards, to recognize teachers for excellence in instruction and provide constructive feedback

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_______________ has a tone in her voice that is respectful and nurturing. She is clear and direct with students yet never raises her voice. Different types of culture is a large part of her classroom. She has multicultural puppets. Her students painted pictures of themselves with multicultural paint which were displayed in her room. She consults frequently with the speech-language pathologist and has her student's goals posted on the wall to reference (no names were posted, so confidential). She has visited all of her student’s homes.

3d. Efficacy and Empowerment: The school executive develops a sense of efficacy and empowerment among staff which influences the school’s identity, culture, and performance.

Internship Activities

Teacher leaders selected to chair school wide activities (PLC’s, School Leadership Team, SIT, HELP Team, liaison committee)
Requested teachers to observe peers at least once per semester

Coursework, Trainings and Readings

DLP Training and assignments (assessing the effectiveness of the school’s PLCs using teacher survey and data from Teacher Working Conditions Survey)

Selected Artifacts

Staff meeting agenda: At Clara Hearne Early Childhood Center, I designed and facilitated a staff meeting on March 15, 2012, in which staff members looked at CIRCLES assessment data to discuss trends in the data. All classes made growth in every area assessed. The teachers highlighted the strategies they had employed to lead to that progress. During this meeting, staff members had the opportunity to recognize the work that they had done to move students forward.

Self-Assessment December 2010
Standard 3: Cultural Leadership
A common thread among most people is the need to belong. To belong to something, whether that is a family, church, sports team or militant organization, can be a source of comfort. Being a part of a group that is like-minded transcends all understanding and offers comfort in a world where comfort may be difficult to find. This message rings true in a school. The school culture must be one that supports this idea of identity. With this identity, comes pride. An effective cultural leader understands students, teachers, staff and parents all come to school as separate individuals, bringing with them their own set of beliefs. Being environmentally aware of trends and any other issues that may impact the functioning of the school should be of utmost importance. It is the mission of the school leader to understand the differences in others while promoting a common belief, vision and goal.
Growing up, I considered myself a thoughtful observer. Many years of quiet observation have fostered sensitivity to the needs of others. While in college, I asked a professor why it seemed that my lunch partners in the cafeteria were the people others avoided. He replied that they knew that I would be kind to them, no matter what their differences were. I feel this type of sensitivity describes who I am today. Working with special students for many years, I feel I do value the uniqueness of others who may be challenged mentally and/or physically. Furthermore, I believe and feel strongly that I consistently provide positive feedback and recognize the power of rewards (Katzenback and Smith, 2005).
As a principal, I must be able to assimilate stakeholder’s differences to formulate a mutual vision. Gosling and Mintzberg, (2003) refer to a worldly way of thinking or put another way, getting into worlds beyond my own. I personally set high moral and ethical standards for myself, believing that above all, honesty, trust, and respect are foundational to everything else. Relating to people who have a different code of ethic is difficult. Lastly, the cultural leader needs to develop cohesion among staff (Marzano, Waters and McNulty, 2005). I see discord among staff but I do not take the initiative to facilitate agreement.
During this next year, my goal is to increase my confidence as an effective cultural leader. My goals are as follows:

I will complete coursework for NELA through May 2012.
I will read leadership journals, keeping a file of articles related to different cultures and religions.
I will create/implement a plan to celebrate accomplishments among the staff at CHECC to develop cohesion among staff.
I will use the tools for reaching agreement (as learned during FL training) during staff meetings.
I will study the NC Teacher Working Condition survey for CHECC to get an understanding of teachers challenges and to understand the perspectives of others.